Bernard Shaw is CNN's Principal Washington Anchor. Shaw anchors much of the network's special events
coverage. On January 17, 1994 he was the first correspondent/anchor to break the news of the major
earthquake - measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale - in Los
Angeles, CA , where he happened to be on another assignment. He was on the air eight minutes after the
earthquake struck at 4:31 AM (PST).
Shaw also covers major political events, including primaries, party conventions, debates, and national
election nights. I
n February 1992, he moderated the third Democratic presidential candidate's debate, held just two days
before the nation's first presidential primary in Manchester, New Hampshire. He was moderator of the second
presidential debate held during October
, 1988 in Los Angeles; he was co-moderator of the April
, 1988 debate among Democratic presidential candidates on the eve of the New York prim
ary.
In July 1993, Shaw anchored CNN's live coverage of President Clinton's first Economic Summit from Tokyo.
Covering such summits live is not new to Shaw, who previously anchored on-site all of the
Bush-Gorbachev/Yeltsin
summits--from Helsinki, Malta, and Moscow, to Washington, DC. He also anchored from Red Square in Moscow
during the 28th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in July 1990.
In the summer of 1989, Shaw covered President Bush's first trip to Eastern Europe and then to Paris for the
Economic Summit.
Before covering the 40th anniversary NATO Summit in May 1989, in Brussels, Shaw had just finished 30 hours
of live coverage of the historic student demonstrations in the heart of Tiananmnen Square in Beijing, China.
He brought leading coverage of the events to the United States and around the world with continuous
reporting; he fought to extend air time when the Chinese government ordered CNN to discontinue its telecast.
Shaw was one of only two network anchors in China in May 1989, when the demonstrations began, and his work
gained him considerable acclaim. He received the 1990 ACE for Best News Anchor and the 1989 National
Association of Television Arts and Sciences News and Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Coverage of a
Single Breaking News Story - Anchor. He was awarded the Gold Medal for Best News Anchor at the 32nd annual
International Film and TV Festival of New York as well as the Journalist of the Yea
r for 1989 by the National Association of Black Journalists.
CNN received numerous awards for its coverage of China, including the Golden Ace, a Silver Baton from the
Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Awards, the George Foster Peabody Award, the National Headliner Award
for Outstanding coverage of a Spot News Event by a TV network, and an Overseas Press Club Award.
Shaw traveled to Japan in February 1989, to anchor CNN's extensive coverage of Emperor Hirohito's funeral.
He also anchored coverage of the 1988 Reagan-Gorbechev Summit in Moscow. In December 1987, Shaw was one of
the four network anchors to interview President Reagan on the eve of the U.S.-U.S.S.R. Summit in Washington,
DC. He also covered their Superpower Summit in Geneva in 1985.
Employment History
Shaw as been a member of the CNN anchor team since the network's inception in 1980. Previously, he was with
ABC News as Senior Capital Correspondent, reporting extensively on the economy
. Shaw also filed special reports during the 1979 hostage crisis at the American Embassy in Tehran. His
first assignment with ABC News was as Latin American correspondent and bureau chief. In that capcity,
he was one of the first reporters to file a story form Guyana on the mass suicides at Jonestown and covered
the overthro
w of General Somoza in Nicaragua.
From 1971 to 1977, Shaw was a correspondent in the Washing Bureau of CBS news. A journalistic coup during
that period was his exclusive interview with Attorney General John Mitchell at the height of the Watergate
crisis. Before joining CBS News, Shaw served as a reporter for Westinghouse Broadcasting Company's Group
W., based first in Chicago, and later in Washington, as White House correspondent.
He began his career in 1964 as an anchor/reporter for WNUS - Chicago, one of the nation's first all-news
radio stations.
Career Acheivments & Recognition
On January 16, 1991, he was one of three CNN reporters who captivated a worldwide audience of more than one
billion with continuous coverage of the first night of the Allied Forces' bombing the Baghdad during
"Operation Desert Storm. "
Shaw was in the Iraqi capital to update his exclusive interview the President Saaddam Hussein conduct din
October 1990.
As a result of the unprecedented coverage, Shaw has received numerous international as well as national
awards and honors
, including:
In July 1991, he received the Eudard Rhein Foundation's Cultural Journalistic Award, marking the first
time that the Foundation has presented this award to a non German.
In October of 1991, the Italian government honored him with its President's award, presented to those
leaders who have actively contributed to development, innovation, and cooperation.
In December of, Shaw was the recipient of the coveted 1991 David Brinkley Award for Excellence in
Communication form Barry University (Mr. Brinkley s alma mater).
As part of CNN's team to cover the outbreak of the Gulf War, Shaw also received the 1990 George Foster
Peabody Broadcasting Award for distinguished service and the 1991 Golden Award for Cable Excellence (ACE) -
the Cable industry's most prestigious award - from the National Academy of Cable Programming.
Shaw personally received the ACE for Best Newscaster of the Year.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) presented him its 1991 Chairman's
Award for Outstanding Journalist
ic Excellence in January 1992.
Shaw has been elected a Fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). Election as an SPJ
Fellow is the highest distinction the Society gives to journalists for public service. In June 1995, he was
inducted into the SPJ Hall of Fame.
Among Shaw's most recent honors:
The 1995 Sol Taishoff Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism from the National Press Foundation
The 1994 Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism and Telecommunications from Arizona State
University (Mr. Cronkite's alma mater)
The 1994 Best Newscaster of the Year ACE for "Prime News"
The 1994 William Allen White Medallion for Distinguished Service from the University of Kansas
The 1994 National Headliner Award from the national Conference of Christians and Jews - Miami Region
The 1993 Best Newscaster of the Year ACE for "Inside Politics 92, "
The 1993 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Award for Outstanding Achievement from the Congress of Racial
Equality (CORE)
The 1992 Missouri Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism from the University of Missouri
The 1992 Emmy Award -- National News and Documentary Competition awarded to CNN
In 1988, Shaw received the Lowell Thomas Electronic Journalist Award and the ACE for Best News Anchor
from the National Academy of Cable Programming
Shaw was also one of the select Alfred M. Landon Lecturers at Kansas State University in 1992.
Education
Shaw studied History at the University of Illinois. On April 27, 1991, the University of Illinois Foundation
announced the establishment of the Bernard Shaw Endowment Fund, creating scholarships at the University's
Chicago campus on his honor. Shaw has personally contributed more than $70,000 to the Fund - his way of
"giving back" some what has been given to him. The grants are awarded to qualified students
needing financial aid, with preferences given to minority and women liberal arts majors
who best represent those values and interests exemplified by Shaw. In May 1994, the University awarded Shaw
an Honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree for his outstanding contributions and endeavors. He has also
received honorary doctorate degrees from Northeastern University in Boston, MA (1994) and Francis Marion
College in Florence, SC (1985).
Internships
